CAPTURED: Pierce County SWAT arrests Jason Stephens in hidden room

FUGITIVE CAPTURED November 10, 2017 —The Pierce County Sheriff’s Department’s SWAT team arrested Jason Stephens early Friday morning at a home on 306th St. S. in Roy.

He was booked into jail for four counts of Unlawful Possession of a Firearm in the 1st degree, Unlawful Possession of a Controlled Substance, Resisting Arrest, Possession of a Stolen Vehicle, four counts of Unlawful Possession of a Controlled Substance with Intent to Deliver, Felony Pursuit/Elude, Failure to Comply, Obstructing a Police Officer and a felony DOC warrant.

Deputies learned that because he was wanted by the police and had been featured on “Washington’s Most Wanted”, Stephens had been going back and from the Roy address to an address in Auburn so he wouldn’t get caught.

Deputies say Pierce County SWAT entered the property and used a loud speaker to order the occupants of a house and a barn to come out. They say when no one exited the barn, several rounds of tear gas were deployed into the windows; two males and two females came out of the barn doors and were taken into custody. At the same time, SWAT team members observed the metal roof of the barn being peeled back, and a man identified as Stephens climbed through the roof in an attempt to hide and/or escape.

Deputies say SWAT team members entered the barn and went upstairs, where they found a corner crawlspace entrance covered by two broken pieces of drywall which had been screwed on haphazardly; the pieces of drywall were held in place with shiny new looking screws and a cordless power drill was observed on a couch that had been pushed in front of the cover to the hidden room.

As the team members pulled down the drywall, Stephens climbed back inside from the roof and crawled toward the deputies from inside the crawlspace. He was taken into custody.

Deputies say Stephens’ girlfriend said they’d been living in an apartment area inside the barn for approximately two months and were aware that Stephens had recently been featured on “Washington’s Most Wanted”. Deputies say she said that she Stephens was a drug dealer and told deputies she is addicted to meth. Deputies say she also admitted that she had screwed the drywall in place over the hidden room in an attempt to help her boyfriend escape.

The photos below were taken by deputies during a search of the barn and property where they located two stolen snowmobiles, a stolen travel trailer, a lever action rifle, various boxes of ammunition, many new and used syringes, a loaded revolver, over $3900 in cash, drug paraphernalia, and a home surveillance system.

A man at the residence told deputies that Stephens had brought a stolen boat motor to the property to sell, and that he was unaware that it was stolen; the man said that he sold it to an unknown person in Fife. Deputies were unable to locate the boat motor. The man also said that he had listed several other motors and generators for sale online for Stephens.

Deputies say Stephens’ arrest is expected to put a direct dent in property crime rates in south Pierce County.

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WANTED IN PIERCE COUNTY October 20, 2017 —
Calling him a big-time drug dealer and car thief, Pierce County Sheriff’s deputies are asking for the public’s help to find Jason Edward Stephens.

The 46-year-old has a warrant for his arrest after he failed to appear in court.

“These are the type of people who are responsible for many overdoses,” said Pierce County Sheriff’s Det. Ed Troyer.

According to official charging documents, deputies spotted Stephens in a stolen vehicle on August 1st. When asked who the truck belonged to, Stephens claimed his wife had borrowed it and that it belonged his father-in-law. However, he could not give his father-in-law’s name. After Stephens was taken into custody, deputies say they found three EBT cards in his wallet and obtained a search warrant for the vehicle where they located an opioid overdose kit, a glass pipe in the middle console with burn marks — and a huge stash. “Two pounds of meth, 50 grams of heroin, $20,000 cash, stolen cards, stolen credit cards, scales, baggies. This suspect has conducted the trifecta of drug dealing,” said Det. Troyer.

Stephens bailed out of jail and now is on the run.

Prosecutors have charged him with Unlawful Possession of a Stolen Vehicle, two counts of Unlawful Possession of a Controlled Substance with Intent to Deliver and Escape from Community Custody.

“Chances are he’s out in another stolen vehicle, continuing to drug deal and ruin people’s lives so we’d like to get him caught,” said Det. Troyer.

Crime Stoppers of Tacoma-Pierce County is offering a cash reward of up to $1,000 for information leading to the arrest of Jason Stephens.

He is 6’6”, 220 lbs., with brown hair and blue eyes.

If you can tell deputies where to find him, call 1-800-222-TIPS (8477), or use the P3 Tips App to submit your information. It’s guaranteed to be anonymous.

CLICK HERE for step-by-step instructions on how to submit an anonymous tip to the P3 Tips App.